Tag Archive | "Cardinals"

Former Ravens tight end Maxx Williams has found a new football home in Arizona.

The 2015 second-round pick from Minnesota announced Thursday on his official Twitter account that he was joining the Cardinals, ending an injury-riddled four-year run in which he never reached his full potential in Baltimore. According to Arizona Sports 98.7 in Phoenix, the 25-year-old agreed to a one-year deal with his new team.

Thank you @Ravens organization for giving me a chance. I wouldn’t be who I am today without the opportunity. On to my next chapter and can’t wait to start. Go @AZCardinals

The Ravens originally drafted Williams to replace Dennis Pitta, who was seven months removed from a second devastating hip injury that had left his career in great doubt. General manager Ozzie Newsome moved up in the second round — in a trade with Arizona coincidentally — to make Williams the first tight end drafted in 2015, but various injuries limited him to just 42 games in four seasons. The most serious was a knee injury that cost him most of the 2016 season and required a rare cartilage surgery that impacted his speed and agility, leading Williams to become more of a blocking tight end than the play-maker the Ravens originally envisioned.

Williams caught 32 passes for 268 yards and a touchdown as a rookie, but he caught just 31 passes for 229 yards and two touchdowns over his remaining time in Baltimore. The Ravens drafting tight ends Hayden Hurst and Mark Andrews last year and re-signing blocking tight end Nick Boyle — a fifth-round choice in the 2015 draft — earlier this offseason made it unlikely Williams would return even though the organization had expressed some interest in re-signing him.

Pro Football Focus graded Williams as the 16th-best tight end in the NFL last year with his blocking ability being the primary reason why. The terms of the deal have yet to be revealed, but the Ravens will hope Arizona pays Williams enough to qualify in the compensatory pick formula, which would give general manager Eric DeCosta a third compensatory pick in next year’s draft.

With the start of the new league year Wednesday brought the official departures of two of the best players in franchise history.

Seven-time Pro Bowl linebacker and 2011 Defensive Player of the Year Terrell Suggs and Super Bowl XLVII Most Valuable Player and best quarterback in franchise history Joe Flacco offered their farewells as Suggs, an Arizona native, has joined the Cardinals and Flacco was officially traded to the Denver Broncos. Given his passion for movies, Suggs posting a farewell video on Twitter wasn’t surprising. The stoic Flacco took a simpler approach with his goodbye.

There isn’t a word that could ever describe what you meant to me. The LOVE, RESPECT, and LOYALTY that you’ve shown me has been like no other. You’ll always have a piece of my heart.
I Love You pic.twitter.com/qhF8u9lGnN

To the Ravens, the fans, and the city of Baltimore: Thank you for an incredible 11 years. I’ll always be proud and grateful for my time spent as your quarterback. Though it’s time to move on, this team will always mean so much to me. #ravensflockpic.twitter.com/Ln6EgWepdU

Not to be outdone, the Ravens produced a pair of terrific tribute videos sure to have you reminiscing — and wondering why the room suddenly became so dusty.

This year will mark the first time in team history the roster will not feature Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, or Suggs as the first two members of that old defensive guard have taken their places in Canton. Suggs seems poised to join them one day after 16 superb seasons with the Ravens.

The coming season will also feature Lamar Jackson as Baltimore’s first opening day starting quarterback not named Flacco since Brian Billick’s final season as head coach. Flacco’s 2012 postseason run epitomized his ability to raise his play when it mattered most, a trait we can all appreciate in this game called life.

(Originally posted as a prelude to the “Free The Birds” walkout in Sept. 2006, this is Part 6 of a 19 Chapter Series on How Baseball and the Orioles berthed WNST.net.)

One day my Pop came home from work in the Spring of 1983 and during dinner announced that we should go on a vacation in the upcoming summer.

Other than Venezuela in 1972, when we took my lone airplane ride, and Disney World in 1978 when we took Amtrak, I had never been much past Ocean City (I had only been there a handful of times because my Uncle Omar had a joint on 28th Street Bayside behind the Jolly Roger amusement park).

We usually just went “home” to South Carolina to visit my Mom’s family and chilled while she visited all her old neighbors and friends. My Pop and I would spend those summer days almost entirely at the Abbeville Civic Center. It wasn’t at all like OUR Baltimore Civic Center with seats and stuff. It was just a little gym with a lobby and my Pop and I would shoot baskets for hours in that hotbox gym. There wasn’t anything else to do in the tiny little South Carolina town. All of my relatives were older than my Mom and she’s now 87. So every one of them was well into their 70’s then and have since passed away.

My Aunt Earline made eggs and bacon and biscuits in the morning and fried chicken in the afternoon. Her sister, my Aunt Edna — she was a cool old lady, she took me to the NWA wrestling matches in Greenwood, S.C. one night! — made the world’s best chocolate fudge (I recently found the recipe!) and fresh peach ice cream in a churn for dessert on alternating days. We picked pecans off the tree in the back yard on Ellis Street and tossed them into a batch of that incredible fudge. And I would throw a super-sized Superball (they were bigger than the normal ones and very rock solid) against the siding of my Aunt Eleanor’s house up the street, pretending I was Nolan Ryan when I wasn’t in that hot gym.

That was vacation for me. There were no other kids, and the black/white thing in Abbeville, S.C., even then in the late 1970’s, was kind of in the backdrop as well. I ran around, dreamed and chased these weird, techni-color grasshoppers they had all over the place.

Kind of Napoleon Dynamite pathetic, huh?

But it’s really true, as I look back upon it.

I was bored as hell (except when my Aunt Edna was involved) and all I really wanted to do was stay at home in Colgate and play baseball on the church lot with my friends, anyway. But I did get to eat some great food in South Carolina. And, one time, a pretty Southern girl painted an orange Clemson paw print on my face at a park called Hickory Knob State Park!

So, when my Pop announced a chance at a trip, he looked to me. I was 14, it was the summer of 1983 and where would I want to go or what would I want to do?
Clearly, it had to involve baseball. And if involved baseball in 1983, it definitely

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It was far from pretty and even farther from perfect, but is sure was nice. After last season’s brutal opening road schedule and dismal 5-11 record, it was indeed very nice for the Ravens to come out of the gate with a win.

Rex Ryan’s team had a very difficult time moving the ball on the Ravens’ defense, particularly in the opening and final quarter. Shareece Wright was downright amazing, as he finished with 9 tackles, three of them behind the line of scrimmage. He was also solid in pass coverage.

The communication seemed to be much better for the back end of the defense, in stark comparison to a year ago. Eric Weddle, Lardarius Webb, Jimmy Smith and Wright seemed to be on the same page for the bulk of the game.

According to our friends at Pro Football Focus, Weddle had the highest overall grade on the team, followed by Wright. On the offensive side of the ball the standouts were QB Joe Flacco, RG Marshall Yanda (penalties aside he was lights out), and Mike Wallace.

The offense looked out of sync at times, but that was to be expected, as this was the first time a lot of the players were on the field at the same time. Their pace and rhythm should improve as the season matures.

Standouts for the Bills were primarily on the defensive side as LB Preston Brown and rush end Jerry Hughes were generally disruptive and presented the Ravens offensive line with all kinds of problems. It is also noteworthy that the Ravens started two rookies on the left side, tackle Ronnie Stanley and guard Alex Lewis.

The Bills’ offense struggled and their highest graded offensive player was TE Charles Clay. Tyrod Taylor struggled to find open receivers down field, and was held in check by the Ravens’ defense. Shady McCoy got around the edge a couple of times, but he was also held under wraps without inflicting any significant damage.

The Bills’ coaching staff is getting some criticism this morning by their fan base as well as the media. The narrative is that they got schooled by the Ravens’ coaching staff, pointing out that the Ravens have been in the playoffs 6 out of the last 8 years under coach Harbaugh. Their clock management and untimely personal foul penalties are particularly coming under scrutiny. The undisciplined tag that’s been following Rex Ryan around has reared it’s ugly head once again.

As for the Ravens, for me the biggest red flag was Marc Trestman and his play calling. It was downright maddening to see the team come out time and again on third and short with Flacco in a shotgun formation. For a team that vowed to commit to the run this year, they sure did pass a lot. The team ran the ball 45% of the time as there were 28 running plays against 34 pass plays. When you take into account the 4 “runs” that Joe Flacco was given credit for (including game ending kneel-downs in the victory formation) the ratio drops to 41%.

For a team that has a lead blocker and thumper in Kyle Juszczyk, and a back who has displayed great heart and determination in short yardage situations in Terrance West, it defies logic to see both of them on the bench while Flacco is in the gun formation. Given Flacco’s knee situation, it is crystal clear and understandable that the Ravens have taken the QB sneak out of their playbook. But there are so many solid and creative things they can do on short yardage situations. That was evident as I watched the Sunday Night scrum between the Cardinals and the Patriots. Both offensive coordinators showed multiple looks and formations, and the Ravens would be wise to roll the tape and “borrow” a few things here and there.

For a while there I had to check to make sure that Cam Cameron was still at LSU vs. the Ravens’ sideline. Trestman was run out of Chicago and overwhelmingly the primary gripe from players and fans alike was that his offense was too pass happy. I sure hope coach John Harbaugh intervenes and makes sure that the Ravens game plan is run heavy this week as the team travels to Cleveland.

In a memorable loss to Jacksonville years ago, when Ray Rice carried the ball something like 8 times, I’ll never forget a quote by Terrell Suggs that has stuck with me through the years. After that loss he said that “when you go on the road, you pack your defense and your running game.” I think that is great advice, and the Ravens need to pay attention here.

Turnovers are hard to overcome in the NFL, particularly on the road when you’re also facing significant crowd noise. Running the ball tends to be easier for an offense to execute. The Ravens need to force turnovers by Cleveland QBs, whether it’s RGIII (he has a shoulder injury) or Josh McCown, run the ball, play solid defense, and let the game come to them. Control the ball, control the clock, take the crowd out of the game, and come home two and oh.

It was beginning to feel like old times for the Ravens late in the second quarter.

Holding a 10-7 lead with just over three minutes left in the first half, the offense had just orchestrated one of its finest drives of the 2015 season and a much-maligned defense had responded by forcing a three-and-out to force the Arizona Cardinals to punt for a second straight possession. Still with two timeouts remaining, the Ravens had visions of growing their advantage before halftime.

They had temporarily made you forget the misery of a 1-5 start, and they suddenly didn’t look like the substantial underdogs that they were entering Monday night.

Of course, that all changed when punter Drew Butler kicked to return man Jeremy Ross, who was promptly stripped of the ball by Cardinals cornerback Justin Bethel. Arizona recovered the fumble on the Baltimore 25-yard line, and replay upheld the ruling on the field.

An unnecessary roughness penalty by Asa Jackson on the punt and pass interference penalties by Lardarius Webb and Brynden Trawick pushed Arizona even closer to the end zone before quarterback Carson Palmer connected with receiver Michael Floyd for a 3-yard touchdown to give the Cardinals a 14-10 lead just before halftime.

The Ravens wouldn’t lead again as neither the offense nor the defense would play as well the rest of the way.

Rinse and repeat.

The “Groundhog Day” narrative intact.

Of course, the fumble wasn’t without controversy as Ross claimed that his knee was down before the ball was jarred lose. It was a close call — one that likely wouldn’t have been overturned by replay had he originally been ruled down by contact — but it’s just the latest example of the Ravens failing to make their own breaks.

We wouldn’t have been discussing the play had Ross simply done his job by securing the ball, something he’s failed to do at previous stops in his NFL career. If we’ve learned anything over the years, it’s that teams leaving plays in the hands of officiating are going to get burned and they rarely have anyone to blame but themselves.

Yes, there were many other variables factoring into Monday’s game, ranging from suspect officiating and faulty headsets to shoddy tackling and Joe Flacco’s underthrow on what should have been a touchdown to Chris Givens early in the second quarter. But Ross’ fumble completely changed the momentum of the game and the Ravens never recovered despite Flacco and the Ravens nearly pulling off a comeback before an end-zone pass intended for Crockett Gillmore was intercepted in the final seconds.

Because of mounting injuries and a severe lack of playmakers, the Ravens simply don’t have the margin for error that they create on a weekly basis. You can complain about officiating all you want — there was plenty to gripe about on Monday night — but the Ravens were still their own worst enemy in the end.

Was the offense able to make the game-changing play — or just move the ball with any consistency at all — in the second half? The Ravens punted on their first four possessions after intermission before a blocked punt by Asa Jackson set them up on the 1-yard line, the first time the offense had been in Arizona territory in the second half.

Did the defense coax Palmer and the Cardinals offense into a critical mistake? The unit is still looking for its first takeaway since Week 3.

After the Ravens looked like their old selves for a sizable portion of the first half, the Ross fumble merely pushed John Harbaugh’s team back into an all-too-familiar pattern that resulted in another loss by a single possession. Perhaps the most sobering part of Monday’s loss was that you felt like the Ravens had played better than they have in recent weeks — they were facing one of the better teams in the NFC on the road, after all — but it still wasn’t enough to overcome their deficiencies.

Yes, the Ravens compete to make games interesting, but they continue doing just enough to keep losing every week.

And their 2015 season has spiraled out of control as a result.

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It’s a position unfamiliar to the Ravens as they attempt to rebound from the first 1-5 start in franchise history in a Monday night trip to Arizona to take on the NFC West-leading Cardinals. Needless to say, John Harbaugh’s team will likely have to play its best game of the season to knock off Arizona, who owns the best point differential (plus-88) and the second-highest point total in the NFL.

As expected, starting cornerback Lardarius Webb (hamstring) is active after practicing on a limited basis all week and being listed as questionable on the final injury report. However, safety Kendrick Lewis (knee) was officially deactivated after suffering a knee injury in the Week 6 loss to San Francisco. Lewis’ absence opens the door for one of Brynden Trawick, Anthony Levine, or Kyle Arrington to start next to strong safety Will Hill in the back end of the secondary.

Defensive end Chris Canty (calf) is active for the first time since Week 2, but it remains to be seen how much he’ll play with Lawrence Guy filling in so effectively in his place.

Prior to Monday night’s game, the Ravens promoted wide receiver Jeremy Butler from the practice squad and waived running back Terrence Magee before Butler was one of their seven inactives. With starter Justin Forsett no longer on the injury report with his ankle ailment, Baltimore didn’t have a need to carry a fourth running back on the 53-man roster.

The Cardinals received good news with speedy second-year wide receiver John Brown (hamstring) being activated against the Ravens.

Ron Tobert will be the referee for Monday night’s game.

The Ravens will be wearing white jerseys and black pants while Arizona dons its red tops with white pants.

The roof will be closed at University of Phoenix Stadium in the Ravens’ first time playing at the venue.

Monday marks the sixth all-time meeting between the Ravens and the Cardinals with Baltimore holding the 4-1 edge. Arizona is seeking its first win over Baltimore since Nov. 28, 1997, a game played at Memorial Stadium. Winners of four straight against the Cardinals, the Ravens are playing in Arizona for the first time since the 2003 season.

Everything about the Ravens organization has come under scrutiny after a 1-5 start with recent draft history being among the biggest concerns.

Though their draft issues pale in comparison to teams like Cleveland who have failed miserably with multiple top choices, I couldn’t help but notice how few of the Ravens’ recent high picks would be contributing in Monday’s contest against Arizona. And much of the blame can be placed on injuries.

In total, the Ravens have selected nine players in the first three rounds over their last three drafts and just four of them — linebacker C.J. Mosley and defensive tackles Brandon Williams, Timmy Jernigan, and Carl Davis — were expected to play meaningful snaps on Monday night. Four others — safeties Matt Elam and Terrence Brooks, wide receiver Breshad Perriman, and tight end Maxx Williams — are sidelined with injuries and 2013 second-round inside linebacker Arthur Brown has been nothing more than a special-teams player in his third season.

It’s interesting to note that the defensive line is one of the Ravens’ few strengths while they’ve lacked playmakers in the secondary and in the passing game, areas where these absent draft picks normally reside. While the blame doesn’t fall solely on these recent selections, it’s difficult to look at that breakdown without concluding it’s a substantial part of what ails the Ravens.

** Much has been made about the NFL still having five undefeated teams at the end of seven weeks, but taking a closer look at the AFC should have the Ravens kicking themselves over their horrendous start. After New England, Cincinnati, and Denver, the conference sports just two other teams — Pittsburgh and the New York Jets — with winning records as the calendar is ready to turn to November.

Anyone who looked at the Ravens’ early-season schedule needed to be realistic about the daunting task of playing five of their first seven on the road, but many opined that a 4-3 record — even 3-4 — would put John Harbaugh’s team in position to make a run in the second half with an easier schedule. That would have proven to be true if not for a 1-5 start, but the Ravens can’t really complain when holding an 0-2 record at M&T Bank Stadium this year.

** Baltimore appears to be getting San Diego at the right time as the Chargers have lost three straight and were handled at home by Oakland on Sunday, but coming off a Monday night road game is a difficult proposition. Under Harbaugh, the Ravens hold a 3-5 record in games immediately following a Monday road game and one of those wins — against Arizona in 2011 — was the largest comeback in team history.

The defense-challenged Chargers may only be 2-5, but preparing for Philip Rivers and the league’s top-ranked passing game on a short week could be a nightmare for the Ravens pass defense. For what it’s worth, the Ravens were coming off a Monday night road game last year when they lost to the Chargers in Baltimore.

** The Steelers did an admirable job surviving without Ben Roethlisberger, who is expected to return to action against the Bengals in Week 8.

Going 2-2 in games started by Mike Vick and Landry Jones is quite respectable, but those two losses came against teams that entered Week 7 with 1-5 records. That has to eat away at coach Mike Tomlin as Pittsburgh trails Cincinnati by three games in the loss column in the AFC North standings.

** Former University of Maryland standout Stefon Diggs had six catches for 108 yards and a touchdown in Minnesota’s 28-19 win over Detroit on Sunday.

The Ravens normally relish a prime-time game to show the country just how good they are.

But there’s nowhere to hide on Monday night as they limp into Arizona with a 1-5 record to take on a Cardinals team atop the NFC West.

To say John Harbaugh and Baltimore don’t have a shot would be silly — it’s the NFL, after all — but there’s not much reason for optimism looking at this matchup on paper or if you’ve simply watched the Ravens play this season. Making matters worse is the health of the secondary as cornerback Lardarius Webb (hamstring) and safety Kendrick Lewis (knee) are both questionable for the league’s 27th-ranked pass defense that will try to slow Carson Palmer and the NFL’s ninth-best passing attack.

It’s time to go on the record as the Ravens meet the Cardinals for the first time since 2011, a game that produced the largest comeback victory in franchise history. Holding a 4-1 all-time record against Arizona, Baltimore will be playing its first game at University of Phoenix Stadium while the Cardinals seek their first win over the Ravens since a 1997 contest played at Memorial Stadium.

Here’s what to expect as the Ravens attempt to win their fifth consecutive game against the Cardinals …

1. Justin Forsett will touch the ball 25 times and score a touchdown with more than 100 yards from scrimmage. If you’re looking for a weakness on their defense, the Cardinals have been underwhelming stopping the run as they’ve allowed 4.1 yards per carry, ranking 21st in the NFL. The Ravens will surely want to keep one of the most prolific offenses in the league on the sideline as much as possible, so controlling the clock and trying to play field position would figure to be the best way to do it. With Patrick Peterson likely clamping down on Steve Smith for much of the night, the Ravens will need Forsett to keep them in third-and-manageable situations to make this one close.

2. Joe Flacco will throw an interception to Tyrann Mathieu that will set up an Arizona score. The Cardinals rank fourth in the NFL with 13 takeaways and have intercepted opponents a league-leading 11 times in six games. This is bad news for Flacco, who has thrown seven interceptions so far this season. With little fear of the Ravens beating the Arizona secondary deep, the free safety Mathieu will have a chance to display his ball-hawking skills and that will pay off with a pick and a long return to put the Cardinals on a short field. General manager Ozzie Newsome needs to find more explosive weapons for his quarterback, but that doesn’t excuse Flacco from committing costly turnovers this year.

3. Jimmy Smith will do a solid job shadowing Larry Fitzgerald, but John Brown and Michael Floyd will catch touchdowns against the Ravens secondary. Webb figures to return to action, but defensive coordinator Dean Pees will still be faced with the dilemma of how to handle the nickel package with neither Kyle Arrington nor Shareece Wright inspiring trust. It makes sense to allow Smith to take on the 6-foot-3 Fitzgerald, but Brown provides a speed threat that the Ravens will need to account for and Floyd also brings good size inside the red zone. Baltimore can hope Brown’s hamstring issue limits his speed, but there are just too many weapons for a poor pass defense to neutralize.

4. Jeremy Ross will catch his first touchdown pass as a member of the Ravens. He’s not a long-term fix, but the former Detroit Lion has five catches for 58 yards in limited snaps over two games compared to Marlon Brown’s 10 receptions and 84 receiving yards while playing extensively in six contests. In other words, it’s time to see what Ross and others such as Chris Givens and Darren Waller can do with Brown being so unproductive. Ross brings some experience at receiver from his days in Detroit and adds much-needed speed to the equation. That will pay off with Flacco throwing his first touchdown to a wide receiver not named Smith or Kamar Aiken this season.

5. Palmer will become the latest quarterback to burn Baltimore in a 31-17 final. There’s a mixed history between Palmer and the Ravens, but none of that means anything with this defense being a shell of what it used to be and the veteran revitalized with a flash group of weapons to throw to. Baltimore will compete for a large portion of this game, but the Cardinals are just a much better football team right now. All five of the Ravens’ defeats this year have been by six or fewer points, but that streak will come to an end with a double-digit loss. It’s difficult to recall the last time there was so much pessimism while previewing an upcoming Ravens game, but that’s what happens when you’re 1-5.

The Ravens listed cornerback Lardarius Webb and free safety Kendrick Lewis as questionable for Monday night’s game against the Arizona Cardinals.

Webb was a limited participant in practices all week after missing last Sunday’s game with a hamstring injury. Meanwhile, Lewis practiced on Saturday after he had been sidelined all week due to a knee injury suffered against San Francisco.

Needless to say, the league’s 27th-ranked pass defense needs all the help it can get in terms of health as Arizona ranks seventh in the NFL in passing offense. Should Lewis not be able to play, the Ravens would likely turn to the combination of special-teams players Anthony Levine and Brynden Trawick to handle the starting spot next to Will Hill in the secondary.

Despite missing Friday’s practice with the calf injury that has already cost him four games, defensive end Chris Canty is probable for Monday’s game after participating fully in Saturday’s practice.

The most notable development on Arizona’s injury report was the status of second-year wide receiver John Brown, who is questionable with a lingering hamstring issue. Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians expressed optimism about Brown’s availability for Monday night, but the speedy wideout is considered a game-time decision after suffering a setback earlier in the week that kept him out of Friday’s practice. Brown practiced on a limited basis on Saturday.

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — With the Ravens off to the worst start in franchise history, many have questioned whether a trade of Steve Smith to a Super Bowl contender might be in the works.

The 36-year-old wide receiver plans to retire after the season, so wouldn’t it make sense for general manager Ozzie Newsome to deal the five-time Pro Bowl receiver for something that could help the franchise in 2016 and beyond?

Apparently, it’s not happening despite a 1-5 record that already puts the Ravens five games behind Cincinnati in the AFC North entering Week 7.

“That’s the first I’ve heard that one,” said head coach John Harbaugh of the trade speculation. “No, there’s no chance of that one. I wouldn’t part with him.”

Smith said Friday that he’d quit if traded elsewhere and that he wants to finish what he started. The trade deadline falls on Nov. 3 at 4 p.m., meaning the best record the Ravens could have by then would be 3-5.

Citing Baltimore’s proximity to his family’s home in Charlotte, N.C., Smith signed a three-year, $10.5 million contract with the Ravens last year that runs through the 2016 season. With the former Carolina Panther playing at such a high level and the Ravens lacking consistent production at the receiver position beyond him, might Harbaugh and others within the organization try to persuade him to reconsider his retirement plans?

“We’ve got a game Monday night,” said Harbaugh as he laughed. “He’s going to be here Monday night — I can promise you that. And for every game after that.”

Smith said earlier this week that his plans after the season remain “on schedule” after he announced his intentions in early August.